Taipei, Sept. 3 (CNA) President Chen Shui-bian expressed hope Tuesday that Taiwan and Indonesia will soon sign a free trade agreement for further promoting the economic cooperation between the two nations.
He made the appeal while receiving Indonesia's Golkar Party Chairman Marzuki Darusman and a delegation at the Presidential Office.
Chen noted that Taiwan and Indonesia are complementary in terms of their economic development and have maintained close relations. The two-way trade amounted to more than US$4 billion last year and Taiwan's investment in the Southeast Asian nation has accumulated to US$2.8 billion, while more than 100,000 Indonesian workers are employed in Taiwan.
It is very important to sign a free trade agreement between the two nations in light of the existing bilateral ties, which are mutually beneficial and reciprocal, Chen said.
He also thanked Marzuki for the assistance he extended to Vice President Annette Lu when she visited Indonesia last month and urged him to promote the establishment of an amity association in the Indonesian parliament to step up parliamentary exchanges between the two nations.
Marzuki and his delegation arrived in Taipei Monday for a goodwill visit and were accompanied by Lu and Vice Foreign Minister Chiu Jung-nan at the meeting.